


i’m anti you and me (but i can’t seem to leave)

by minslov



Category: Stray Kids (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Office, Angst with a Happy Ending, Bickering, Blind Date, Break Up, Crying, Cute Han Jisung | Han, Drinking, Drunken Flirting, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Enemies to Lovers, Flirty Lee Minho | Lee Know, Getting Together, Han Jisung | Han & Kim Seungmin are Best Friends, Han Jisung | Han is a Little Shit, Han Jisung | Han is a Mess, Humor, Hwang Hyunjin & Lee Minho | Lee Know are Best Friends, M/M, Minor Hwang Hyunjin/Kim Seungmin, Mutual Pining, Oblivious, Rivalry, Romantic Comedy, Sad Han Jisung | Han, Sarcasm, Sassy Minho, Slow Build, Slow Burn, Strangers to Lovers, Swearing
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-31
Updated: 2020-12-25
Packaged: 2021-03-08 22:27:26
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 14,758
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27284161
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/minslov/pseuds/minslov
Summary: Surely Seungmin had seen every side of Jisung—the crazy loud “I’m the best damn singer” at 3 AM one, the “it’s not my fault this drama writer is a spawn of satan” crybaby one, the “this is it, I’m quitting” hard-working one—but still here was a Jisung in front of him he couldn’t place a name on. It was a heartbroken, lifeless one that he knew didn’t like.After trying out everything he could, to get the boy out of their shared apartment, Seungmin decided that maybe a stupid idea was all that he had left. So here he was, setting up Jisung on a blind date at 12 am.A little faith in the world to line up a happy day for Jisung didn’t seem like too much to ask for, right?; or where Jisung and Minho meet each other in the most unexpected situations, with nothing but hate in their hearts.
Relationships: Han Jisung | Han/Lee Minho | Lee Know, Hwang Hyunjin/Kim Seungmin
Comments: 10
Kudos: 65





	1. Chapter 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hellloooo <3 
> 
> although i’ve always wanted to write minsung, i never actually tried to but after loads and loads of procrastinating, i’ve finally decided to do this :p this is my first time writing for skz at all so i hope it turns out well !! 
> 
> hope you enjoy reading this, as much as i enjoyed writing this :] also this is unbeta-ed, so i’m sorry if there are any errors

“I’m making him pay double for these seriously.”

Seungmin shuffled the bags full of snacks in his hands as he searched around in his pocket to look for the pair of keys that had been dangling all the way from the convenience store. He had called Jisung up at least a dozen times from the store, meaning to ask him if he could come and help with picking up the food but the younger didn’t even pick up the call.

Finally, taking out the keys, he managed to grab the packet of ramen that had slipped out from the overflowing bag, right at the last second. A sigh escaped his lips, as he finally unlocked the door and was met with nothing but an empty couch.Ofcourse, Jisung had managed to slip away while he sent Seungmin to buy snacks for their movie night today. Honestly, he wasn’t even surprised this time afterall it was truly a Jisung thing to do.

He managed to place the cheap convenience store bag on the table, nearly toppling it over in the process, as he reached out for his phone next and called the same number he always had whenever Jisung’s whereabouts were unknown. It was a habit, and knowing how often Jisung was gone without any prior notice, it was almost expected that Seungmin had Jihyun’s number on speed-dial. 

One, two, three rings and all Seungmin got was the beep of the voicemail. That was weird, he thought, since Jihyun always picked up his calls especially when he was with Jisung. Seungmin was convinced that even Jihyun understood how much of a headache his boyfriend was as a roommate. And even though Seungmin hated calling people twice because he knew how annoying that was, courtesy of being friends with Jisung, he dialed up the same number again. Except this time, finally Jihyun’s low pitched voice was heard from the other end.

“Oh, hey Seungmin.”

“Hi, give the phone to Jisung”.

Seungmin really wasn’t someone who wasted his time, and he was glad that Jihyun knew that. If he didn’t, he’d surely think of Seungmin as a rude person which was far from the truth. He liked to think of himself as just a brutally honest person if that was any better. 

“He’s not here”, said Jihyun in an unaffected voice. 

“What do you mean he’s not there? Well, he’s not here either so if you’re both playing another one of your pranks, you can tell Jisung he won’t be entering the apartment today.”

“Seungmin, seriously he’s not here.”

“Okay, I’ll believe you for a second there. Tell me where he is then.”

“Again, I don’t know!” Seungmin could hear the annoyance in Jihyun’s voice but there was nothing else he could do. He knew Jisung always told his boyfriend where he was going, at least that’s what he thought until now. 

“This is ridiculous. He won’t pick up, and I have no idea where to find him. Do you possibly know anything about where he could be?”

This time, Seungmin heard Jihyun sigh as his voice dropped in tone. The annoyance slowly withering away, and concern taking over his voice. “I-I don’t know but—um, we broke up.”

“WHAT? And you’re telling me this now? Please tell me you’re kidding”, Seungmin’s voice flared up as he couldn’t believe what he was hearing. 

“I don’t know— I’m sorry, okay but yes can you believe me now when I say I don’t know where he is?”

“Well, I surely fucking do”, said Seungmin as he instantly disconnected the call no longer wanting to hear any of the other’s pity excuses or explanations. He didn’t care about who broke up with whom or why they did, all he knew was Jisung must be devastated. And ofcourse, there was only one place where he could expect to find the boy in question whenever he was upset. 

Without wasting any time, Seungmin grabbed the keys to the car, which thankfully Jisung hadn’t taken with him. As he turned on the ignition and started driving away, he called up another person he knew he would need to calm Jisung today. 

Seungmin gave him no chance to speak up, as he threw the words “Chan hyung, I’m picking you up!” as soon as the call was connected. 

“Woah there mate, what’s the rush? I’m still working on a report for another hour”. Chan sounded audibly surprised, probably taken off guard by Seungmin’s sudden call and yet even more by his unexpected actions. 

“Well, now you’re not. It’s a Jisung emergency.”

“Seungmin, if he brought another stray cat into the apartment I’m sure it can wait another hour to be dealt with. I’m working on a report right now.”

“I wish it was that easy but apparently Jihyun and him broke up, hyung”, Seungmin said with concern evident in his voice. 

“Oh my god, okay I’ll be waiting at the entrance of the building. Drive faster, but also slower!”

“What does that even mea— You know what nevermind, what about your report?”

“That’s nothing 5 AM Chan can’t handle, so you better hurry!”

With a shake of his head and the call finally disconnected, Seungmin pushed the accelerator a bit more. Thanks to the fact that he had Jisung’s car with him, he arrived at Chan’s office in another fifteen minutes and found the boy standing at the entrance just like he said he would. Before Seungmin could even greet the older and welcome him into the car, Chan walked towards the door, jolting it open with an emergency evident in his actions. Seungmin could see the concern plastered in Chan’s expressions and he didn’t blame him for it. 

Jisung had been dating Jihyun since their last year in university, the shorter boy falling for the university heartthrob, which Seungmin always called too much of a cliche much to Jisung’s displeasure. He remembered seeing Jisung walk into the class, absolutely awestruck and muttering nothing but an incomprehensible rant about “the most gorgeous guy he had ever laid eyes on”. It was no wonder that over the course of next few weeks, their entire friend group was made to support Jisung in his attempts at flirtation which was the closest thing to a wreck, as Felix had said. However, the same said wreck was the reason Jihyun had noticed Jisung, and the two had eventually gotten closer before anyone could even understand what exactly had unfolded. All Seungmin knew was that Jisung was happy, if the constant bright smile that was always ghosting his lips was anything to go by. 

Seungmin remembered details of Jisung’s relationship, and sometimes he wonders if that’s normal but then he remembers he’s Han Jisung’s friend and therefore things aren’t supposed to be normal in the first place. He remembered the other’s first fight with Jihyun which had resulted in a holed up Jisung, buried in his blankets for three complete days as all he did was cry. He remembered drawing calming circles on Jisung’s back as the older tried to muffle his sobs. 

All such moments of weakness and absolute chaos that Seungmin had witnessed were definitely the key that brought him closer to Jisung. Sure they had always been friends per say, but none of them had expected to turn out to be each other’s “ride or die”, as Jisung often stated. Seungmin disagreed with him every time, but he had also quite given up when it became a daily statement from his roommate. So now, here he was, already knowing where to find the other boy just like all the other times when he was upset. It was Jisung’s closest thing to safe haven and although Seungmin often questioned its meaningfulness to himself, he never really called Jisung out for the same. 

Chan’s voice snapped Seungmin’s focus back to the man sitting beside him, as the older proceeded to ramble, “He must be getting drunk at a club, right? Probably the one he went to when he lost to me in kart rider. Getting there is going to take us about twenty minutes but if you drive a bit faster, I’m sure we can get there by —”.

Seungmin shook his head before cutting off Chan’s train of thoughts. “He’s definitely not near alcohol right now”, he said knowing that Jisung avoided drinking when he was upset because a drunk Jisung was just ten times sadder and definitely not something anyone liked to see.

“What do you mean?”

The confusion etched onto Chan’s face made Seungmin wonder if anything that he said really sounded that surprising or perhaps he’d just gotten too used to that information owing to all the years he’d spent together with Jisung.

“I mean what I said. He isn’t at a club, and he definitely isn’t getting drunk”, said Seungmin once again in a matter-of-factly voice. 

Chan let out an exasperated sigh, as he muttered a quick “Well where is he?”

Seungmin remembers himself being the same the first time he’d discovered Jisung’s secret place and habit. It wasn’t anything too unusual, but he could never see himself doing anything like that because yes as much as he restrained himself from saying it in front of Jisung, it was indeed sheer stupidity. 

“Oh, I forgot you’ve never had to run out in the middle of the day looking for an upset Jisung. Looks like you’re in for a wild ride now, hyung”.

Even though his eyes were focused on the road ahead, Seungmin still managed to turn around and give Chan a short-lived smile, one that the latter could decipher to be filled with fondness. 

Soon enough, Chan realized Seungmin’s words were indeed true as he stood in front of a small gate that guarded the entry to a ferris wheel. For the rest of the ride, no matter how much Chan whined about wanting explanations, Seungmin just dismissed him with a nod and continued driving only to stop at an amusement park’s parking lot. He had followed Seungmin, even more confused than before, throwing the same question at the other again and again which was “Are you definitely sure we’re at the right place?” Seungmin had stopped responding after the third time, and had continued walking towards the ferris wheel nonchalantly. 

“For the last time, please say something before I start questioning your sanity”, Chan said, his eyes still fixed on the amusement ride in front of him. 

“Just wait for like one minu— Nevermind, there he is.” 

Chan followed Seungmin’s gaze, finally spotting the boy who was slowly descending to their eye levels, in a passenger car. From this distance, Chan could make out that Jisung’s one hand had a death grip on the handle at his side as if holding on for dear life and the other held a fluffy pink cotton candy. He looked like a lost child with no clue, an absolute wreck, but still Chan couldn’t help but laugh at the sight in front of him. Seungmin mirrored his laugh as he watched the shock on Chan’s face morph into a mix of amusement and concern. 

As if on cue, Jisung’s pod stopped at the ground and he made eye contact with both the boys who stood some steps away, looking at him as if he was a birthday clown. He guessed he might be looking close to one, as he registered the half eaten cotton candy in his hands and his tear stained cheeks. The smokey eyes that he had oh so eagerly perfected for his date were all smeared, and the silky shirt that he had tucked into his tightly fitted jeans was a mess but Jisung had never been one to care.

He didn’t care about the judgemental glances that some children sent his way as he jumped out of the passenger car, didn’t care about how one of them even had the audacity to laugh as he stumbled on his way, and absolutely did not care when he furrowed his eyebrows but still wordlessly ran towards Seungmin immediately engulfing him into the tightest hug.

Chan stood at the side, still taking in the situation unfolding in front of him. Jisung had gone through a breakup, lost a 2 year long relationship and here he was in an amusement park. Climbing out of the ferris wheel to cling on to Seungmin, his hold on the cotton candy still as tight as ever. This was an upset Jisung’s solution.

Even though Chan always considered himself to be a fairly understanding individual, he really couldn’t wrap his head around this entire idea and before he could stop himself, a chuckle escaped his lips as his gaze lingered on the two boys still standing closer than he thought was possible.

Seungmin glared at him as soon as he heard the older boy laugh, and Chan stood there taken aback for a second at how threatening Seungmin looked. He immediately pressed his lips into a straight line, and cleared his throat as if to inform Jisung of his presence too. Jisung, however, did not seem to care as he detached himself from the other boy, making no attempt to even glance in Chan’s direction. 

“Sungie, you wanna talk about it?”, Seungmin said, voice as careful and soft as ever, as he tested the waters before strongly trying to force the boy into a conversation that he might not be ready for. 

An entire minute passed, and Seungmin had already accepted the silence as Jisung’s answer to his question. He moved to place his hand on Jisung’s shoulder, pressing the shorter boy against him in order to convey comfort. He wasn’t sure if something as subtle as this would work but he was proven wrong by the way Jisung melted into his side, making no attempt to detach himself from the other anytime soon. 

“Where did you park the car?”, was all Jisung said before he started walking towards the parking lot with Seungmin still at his side, and Chan following behind.

; 

As soon as the three boys had reached the car, Jisung had hopped into the backseat without even giving any chance for the other boys to strike a conversation again. He was now huddled at the corner of the seat, in an attempt to make himself look as small as possible. He stared out of the window, not sparing a single glance to either of the boys as his eyes were focused on the ferris wheel that was barely visible from a distance this far. He already missed it, missed being at the top alone with nothing but cold air hitting his face and looking down at nothing and everything that existed around him.

Shaking his head at the boy’s attempt to isolate himself, Seungmin turned towards Chan and passed him a comforting smile that seemed to convey something along the lines “just give him some time, he’ll come around”. Chan however must’ve not got the meaning behind it because as soon as they were all seated inside and Seungmin had started to drive away, the older boy had turned around to face Jisung and threw a question at him. 

“Jisung, are you okay?”, his voice was careful, hinted with some fear as if he was terrified of saying something wrong that would trigger a breakdown from the person in question.

Jisung lifted his head, finally meeting Chan’s eyes for the first time that night. Chan could see that the other was furious, directing anger at everyone and everything that existed. Well, anyone except Seungmin maybe.

However, his tear stained cheeks were a contrast to his angry demeanor and maybe Jisung saw the way that Chan’s eyes softened further as he registered in the younger’s appearance. At that, he ducked his face into his hands and Chan wanted to ask why Jisung was so evident about not showing his vulnerable side to him, but decided against it soon enough. 

“Well okay, how about we play some music? The silence is getting creepy now”, Chan said as he shuffled to sit straight and turn on the radio. He could see that Seungmin didn’t approve of his actions, if the eyes boring into his side were anything to go by, but honestly what could possibly go wrong in just playing some music, right?

It turns out a lot could go wrong. It could go a lot wrong when the first song that came on was “Break my heart again” by Finneas and you had a heartbroken friend sitting in the back of the car. It could go a lot wrong when sobs of the said friend got louder and you had a person by your side staring at you like he was going to kill you right that second. 

Chan realised that it had indeed gone all wrong and he fumbled his hand around the buttons in an attempt to turn off the music. It was quite a struggle on his part, the fear coursing through his veins definitely not helping his nerves, but at the end he did manage to do it, thanks to Seungmin who had screamed at the top of his lungs after a few seconds with his eyes still focused on the road ahead.

“Just turn down the volume, oh my fucking god!”

The chaos that had ensued just seconds before left no traces behind as the inside of the car was once again enveloped by silence, somehow getting more quieter than it was before. Chan had decided that if he wanted to make it home alive without facing Seungmin’s wrath, he would just simply sit there breathing and not make any other move that could backfire right at him. 

However, when he heard the faint rings of a call going through, he realised it wasn’t going to be as easy as he thought. In an instant, Seungmin had turned to him for a brief second with his eyes wide open as he must’ve realised something that Chan had missed out on. 

“Take his phone!”, Seungmin said with urgency evident in his voice. 

Chan still didn’t understand what the younger boy meant by that, but he moved around nonetheless, turning his body to face Seungmin’s side.

He asked, “What do you mean?”

“Take Jisung’s fucking phone!” 

This time Seungmin’s voice didn’t leave any choice, and as soon as Chan’s mind took the words in, he turned around to discover Jisung clutching his phone to his ear with his eyes drooped and face turned away in an attempt to hide away the guilt.

Without wasting a second, Chan jumped at the smaller boy, knocking into Seungmin’s side during the struggle but the latter didn’t seem to mind as he kept his grip strong on the steering wheel.

“Jisung, disconnect that call immediately!”, came Seungmin’s stern voice, no more sounding calm. 

Chan still struggled in the front seat for a few seconds as he tried to grab the phone from Jisung who purposely kept backing away. He pleaded with his eyes, asking Chan to stop reaching out but the older didn’t look like he had plans to do that anytime soon. After a few more slaps that landed on Jisung’s arm and Jisung tossing around the phone from one hand to another, Chan finally managed to snatch the object away. 

Chan settled back into the front seat comfortably, as he scoffed at the pouty boy who sat at the back with his arms crossed across his chest like an angry toddler. Seungmin seemed to be proud of his victory too, as he murmured a little “see what happens when you don’t listen to me” aimed at Jisung. 

Chan could see Jisung opening his mouth to make a cutting retort, but he was interrupted by a voice that was foreign to him but definitely not to the other two boys who were frozen in their seats with widened eyes. 

“Ji, you know I still care about you but if you call me one more time today I won’t have a choice but to block your number.”

Chan glanced at the phone clutched in his hands, realising that in all the hassle of taking it away, he had forgotten to disconnect the call and had somehow managed to turn on the speaker instead. From the words uttered by the unknown voice, it didn’t take him more than a second to realise who the voice must belong to. His suspicion was confirmed by the contact name staring right back at him.

“Jihyunie”, followed by an annoying number of heart emojis. 

He turned back around to find Jisung hugging his knees, but this time he didn’t hide away his face as fresh tears rolled down his cheeks. He glanced at Chan, shame flashing in his eyes, and shook his head.

Chan understood that Jisung meant he couldn’t do this, and for a minute he considered asking the boy why he had called that number in the first place. He decided not to do that though, as the person on the other end of the call still waited for an answer. 

“I’m sorry, I must’ve accidentally dialed your number while I was plugging his phone into the charger”, Seungmin lied, gesturing for Chan to bring the phone closer to him. 

“Oh, Seungmin it’s you. That means you found him, right? Sorry for the sudden outburst but it’s just that Jisung called me about five times already since, you know, and I didn’t want him to be hung up on this for too long”, said Jihyun.

Seungmin scoffed, not making any attempt to keep his annoyance subtle as he said his next words.“Yeah, sure I can hear the concern. Sorry again for the inconvenience, though.”

With that said, he took the phone from Chan’s hand and disconnected the call immediately. 

; 

Seungmin sighed, contented, as his back finally hit the comfort of his bed, his legs dangling from the edge as he stared at the ceiling as if the white surface would have some answers etched on for him. There weren’t any though and even though that wasn’t surprising, it still left him disappointed.

It wasn’t as hard as he’d expected, to tuck Jisung into bed, especially with Chan’s help who had just headed back to the office a few minutes before too. The heartbroken boy was consistent on not eating, saying that the uncountable number of cotton candies he’d stuffed himself with had given him enough sugar for today, but Chan had somehow still convinced the younger to eat a few bites of takeout they’d ordered. 

Seungmin could see through Jisung, in a way he knew no one else did. He could see behind the little smile, how Jisung curled into himself when he was finally in the comfort of his room. He could hear the muffled sobs as he’d walked Chan out, but he’d decided to let the other cry his heart out tonight.

He knew it was better for Jisung to be in pain for a little while, than be in love with that asshole a moment longer.

He fished out his phone from his pocket, a message from two hours ago staring at him immediately and he couldn’t help how a smile made onto his face unconsciously. He tapped on the notification, a “you coming 2nite?” greeting him soon and if he had to, he’d blame his sleep deprived self for deciding that a message wouldn’t do justice to someone who might’ve been waiting two hours for a reply.

He settled on his bed, sitting straight, as he dialed one of the contacts he’d been talking to a lot over the course of the last few months. The person on the other end picked up in a single ring, earning a giggle from Seungmin as he made no attempt to hide his happiness on finally getting a chance to talk to the other.

“You never replied to my text”, said Hyunjin, his pout somehow evident over the call too. “Oh my god wait are you at the bar, right now? Is that why you called? Fuck, I’m so sorry I was about to call you and—”.

“Hyunjin, breathe. I’m not at the bar, instead I’m in my bed with no plans to move. That’s why I wanted to call and apologise for not showing up even though I’d promised to”, Seungmin’s voice grew quieter as the guilt swept over him. 

“That’s a shame, because I really thought I could see you in the next—”, he paused and Seungmin could hear him talking to someone else, although their voices very faint, not allowing Seungmin to make out the words. “— two minutes!”

Seungmin furrowed his eyebrows, not quite understanding the meaning behind his words.

“What do you mean?”

“What I mean is that I’m going to be outside your apartment building in approximately two minutes and I was hoping I could see you.”

Seungmin’s heart shouldn’t have skipped a beat like it did, but he couldn’t say that he didn’t like the way heat rushed to his cheeks. 

“Why are you even”, he stopped, too distracted to complete the question as he’d already jumped out of the bed to check his appearance once in the mirror before quietly exiting the apartment, making sure not to alarm his roommate in the process. 

“You didn’t reply to my text for two hours, what else was I supposed to do? Just let myself wonder if your smartass had somehow managed to get kidnapped, or maybe even killed?”, Hyunjin said, voice strangely serious for an assumption that seemed supposedly very unrealistic to him. 

“That’s a little too dramatic even for you, don’t you think?”

Seungmin sounded out of breath as he was running down the stairs, although Hyunjin didn’t like the way that it made _him_ happy imagining the smile that must be plastered on the younger’s face at the moment.

“Not really, no”.

As soon as the words left his lips, he saw Seungmin exit the building, the phone still clutched in his hand as he looked around for a moment with an adorable pout. Although Hyunjin thought that was the cutest thing ever, he couldn’t deny that the way Seungmin beamed at him when his eyes finally found Hyunjin’s was definitely more breathtaking. 

The younger boy was standing in front of him in a heartbeat, both of them mirroring their actions as they put their phones down and smiled from ear to ear. Hyunjin knew Seungmin would call him a sap if he started talking about how much he’d missed the other boy over the course of the last two weeks when they hadn’t gotten a chance to see each other. So, instead of letting Seungmin win with his little confession, he decided to simply embrace the other into a tight hug. 

Seungmin wrapped his arms around tighter, closing the distance between them that now Hyunjin could feel the younger’s breath hitting his neck and leaving him with a tingling sensation. He felt Seugmin shift a little, and he thought that maybe the younger wanted to let go but instead what he heard was Seungmin’s voice close to his ear, “I missed you”.

Hyunjin stepped away, with his eyes wide and Seungmin thought that he regretted it. He regretted letting the words slip up but then he saw the shock in Hyunjin’s eyes morph into something unrecognizable. He wasn’t sure what it was but he knew it was something he liked when Hyunjin cooed at him

“Me too, Minnie!”

“What are you doing here?”, Seungmin said, detaching himself from the other boy reluctantly, only so that he could have a good look at the other’s face. 

“Well, you didn’t come to the bar today and my shift ended early so I figured checking up on wouldn’t hurt anyone”.

As much as Seungmin appreciated the older’s visit and his genuine smile, he couldn’t help but feel guilty for cancelling their plans without a notice. Not only did he probably worry Hyunjin, but he’d even made Hyunjin drive across from the city. The guilt just settled deeper into his stomach and he didn’t even notice when he’d started biting his lips, out of habit.

As if Hyunjin’s eyes had been following every little movement of his, the other boy called him out on it with worry still lacing his voice.

“Hey, it’s fine, okay? It was my decision to come here and see you, so don’t be too hard on yourself. Plus, I didn’t even have to drive here myself or anything! I basically got my own private Uber driver, although he seems to be a cranky one”, Hyunjin continued as he turned around to guide Seungmin to look at a car parked not too far from them.

Seungmin could see that someone was sitting in the driver’s seat, but the darkness of the night didn’t allow him to get a good look at the said boy. Swallowing the bitterness that was building up inside his mouth, he tried to sound as nonchalant as he could manage as he said his next words,“Who is that?”

Hyunjin turned around once again, sparing a short glance at the car as if reminding himself about the other person’s identity but he was quick to look Seungmin in the eyes again. Although the previous softness was still etched into them, Seungmin could see the mischievous glint that was overpowering it.

“Oh, that? Just someone I’ve been hanging out with”, he said with a smirk and Seungmin wished he could wipe it off the older’s face.

Seungmin scoffed, his eyes widening to convey his disbelief. That seemed to satisfy Hyunjin as his smirk just grew bigger but after a few seconds of trying to make out the face of the person in question, Seungmin decided that being subtle wasn’t getting him anywhere.

With an unexplainable surge of confidence he moved a bit closer to the car, still maintaining a considerable distance not to warn the stranger, and tilted his head to get a clear look through one of the windows.

Seungmin’s gaze finally landed on a person rather than just a silhouette, someone definitely older than him. He thanked the streetlights for a second that allowed him to make out the other’s face, one with a chiseled jawline and sharp features yet eyes that somehow were too serene to match his intimidating appearance. He wore a hoodie, one that was probably too big for him by the way it completely engulfed the boy and it was then that Seungmin realised he had spent a minute or more just standing there, staring.

He turned around sheepishly, so as to face Hyunjin once again, his thoughts still stuck on the unknown individual. The boy was pretty, too pretty for Seungmin’s liking, and he didn’t like that thought anymore as he remembered Hyunjin’s words saying they had been hanging out. Did that mean Hyunjin was seeing someone? If that was the case, it wouldn’t make sense why he’d drive Hyunjin to Seungmin’s place, right? Or was it maybe that Hyunjin had said he wanted to check on a casual friend and that’s why it was no issue? 

Seungmin’s mind spiralled, still trying to formulate a proper sentence that’d put an end to the awkwardness that surrounded him. However, deciding that it wasn’t better to waste any more time, Seungmin settled on a casual “bye” before he started walking away from Hyunjin. 

Although the sound grew fainter as he continued to walk towards the apartment building, Seungmin could hear Hyunjin chuckle and the next thing he knew, the other boy was screaming loud enough for him to hear every word very precisely.

“Come meet me tomorrow! I’ll introduce you to him, although it seems like you’ve already gotten a good look.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thank you so much for reading !! <3 i’m going to try and update as soon as possible but it’ll probably be once every 2 weeks because uni is being really hard on me rn . anyways ! i keep crying abt seungbin and im so tempted to just make seungbinjin happen here skdksndjd
> 
> [ AAAAAAAA i still can’t believe i actually posted this, this chapter’s been sitting in my drafts for months ]


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hi hey hello, thank you so much for the support on the last chapter! each one of the comments and kudos means a lot to me, and i’m really hoping you’ll like this chapter too <3

“It’s been three weeks and I have no idea what to do. He won’t eat, he won’t sleep, I mean he won’t even get scared when I give him the glare. It’s like he just isn’t ready to accept the fact. I really just want to tell him to stop crying over that asshole, but I’m also so so worried”, Seungmin said, without stopping to take in a breath, the worry evident in his tone as if his eyes weren’t an indication enough.

Hyunjin moved from the other end of the counter to stand right in front of Seungmin again, his hand now lying on Seungmin’s as he carefully spoke his next words, “Minnie, it’s okay. You’re doing your best already. I know he’s having a hard time but if you keep neglecting yourself just like him, all we’re going to end up with is another Jisung.”

Seungmin waited for Hyunjin to continue, as he knew the older wasn’t done yet. Instead, he focused his attention on the hand that burned against his skin. 

Seungmin hadn’t been open to any forms of skinship, not when he’d met Hyunjin the first time, but here he was finding comfort in the other’s touch. He couldn’t help but think that he only has one clingy person to blame for his growing fondness for little touches here and there. 

Their first meeting wasn’t anything unconventional, just simply a sober boy trying to get away from a group of his drunk friends. Seungmin had stumbled, as he pushed through sweaty bodies to finally take a seat at the bar counter.

Barely a minute had passed before a voice broke his calm, hurriedly asking him what kind of drink he’d like. Surely, Seungmin had looked up with an intention to dismiss the bartender without a second thought. However, when his eyes landed on the prettiest blonde standing in front of him, with eyebrows raised, the words had died inside his throat.

It was since that day that it had become a natural habit for Seungmin to visit the bar once in a while, definitely not with the intention to drink. They’d talk in the mere moments when Hyunjin wasn’t busy tending to the customers’ orders, and it was probably just a week of getting to know each other before they had exchanged numbers with tinted cheeks and shy smiles.

“How are studies going for you?”, he heard Hyunjin say, but he made no attempt to answer the other.

The studies. It was not a black or white area for Seungmin, instead it was a completely grey one. Sometimes, he’d think he’s doing well and a little bit of pride would swell up in his heart with every page of a book he turned. However, there were times, more often than not, where no matter how high were the grades he received or how many assignments he had completed in a day, the satisfaction would never find its way to him. It wasn’t good but it wasn’t bad too, instead it was just there. Being a part of his life that he had gotten too used to. So, Seungmin decided he didn’t want to answer the question.

Instead, in a sudden surge of confidence, he rubbed his thumb over Hyunjin’s palm as he whispered his next words. “Your hands are pretty.”

“I thought we had already established that since you like to hold them so much”, Hyunjin giggled.

However, before Seungmin could retaliate against his statement, which he knew was very much true, a loud voice interrupted them causing him to remember their surroundings once again. Hyunjin passed him an apologetic glare as he detached his hand from Seungmin’s and moved on to prepare a drink for one of the customers. 

This was the first time Seungmin was meeting Hyunjin after the mess of a meeting had taken place outside his apartment building. Hyunjin had tried to bring up the memories of that day, surely to see the blush creeping on Seungmin’s cheek as the other boy sat there regretting his decisions. However, Seungmin was faster, quickly switching the topic over to possibly anything else in his life. It was no wonder that sooner or later he had mentioned the condition of his heartbroken roommate. 

Although Hyunjin had never met the smaller boy, he presumed it was because of the great listener in him that he never interrupted Seungmin once as he continued to rant about the other boy endlessly. Now, as Hyunjin stood out of earshot distance, Seungmin allowed a sigh to escape his lips. His shoulders slumped as he gripped the cold glass of drink in his hands and let his thoughts wander back to his oh so ever miserable roommate once again. 

It wasn’t that Seungmin was bothered by how Jisung had brought down the mood of the entire place, no matter what the time or day was, but the fact that he had observed similar states of the other on multiple occasions in the past.

One thing different about this one was that Jisung showed no signs of getting out of it though, unlike his previous low days which used to never last more than a week. Maybe sometimes it was even just a day too, when Jihyun would walk into the apartment with either a practiced apology or a comforting hug landing right into Jisung’s arms. Seungmin supposed that option was long gone now though.

;

Jisung had stayed in his rooms since the day of the break-up, and even though Seungmin thought that some peace and alone time would help the boy, he knew it was getting a little too much on the seventh day of Jisung’s isolation.

He had barged into the room, eyebrows furrowed and a stern expression plastered across his face, which was a significant contrast to the tray of waffles and a mug of hot coffee he held in his hands. He had set down the food in front of Jisung who was lying cocooned in his blanket, showing no motivation for getting up anytime sooner. That, however, pushed Seungmin off the edge a little more and he decided that being a subtle-pusher was not going to work with Jisung this time. 

“Get out.”

“What?”, Jisung’s voice was muffled by the pillow that he buried his face deeper into, but the sudden comment must’ve taken him off guard if the way his eyebrows furrowed was anything to go by.

“You heard me. Get out”, Seungmin repeated.

“I already took a shower, don’t worry. Just go away now.”

Seungmin hadn’t realised he needed to be more specific than that but he guessed that he might’ve been expecting too much from a boy who was wrapped up in the comfort of his blankets, with a pout and eyes closed, like a child trying to get out of going to school. “I don’t mean just getting out of bed, Sung. I mean getting out of the house. Get up and go to work, or else you’re going to get fired.”

“Does it look like I care?” 

“Does it look like I’m going to keep you here if you don’t pay your rent for this month?”, Seungmin retaliated. Both boys knew there was no bite in the statement, and definitely not even a single ounce of truth, but somehow it seemed to gather Jisung’s attention as he sat up straight with a loud groan.

“I better see you leaving out that door in the next fifteen minutes, Han.”

If someone else had witnessed that interaction, they would’ve confirmed Seungmin’s victory. Honestly Seungmin had been a little proud of it too when he saw the smaller boy exiting the apartment, now dressed in a formal attire but his shoulders just as slumped and his movements discouraged. At least there was some progress, he had thought.

However, all the pride had vanished down the drain when Seungmin had scurried back into the place after getting done with his classes for the day, a bit earlier than expected. Jisung was now sprawled on the living room floor, his hands hugging onto his favorite plush, and eyes concentrated on the television. 

“What the fuck are you doing here? I sent you off to work, and as far as I remember that isn’t supposed to end for another three hours“, Seungmin said as his eyes drifted off to the watch wrapped around his wrist.

Jisung wiggled a little, turning his body a bit in Seungmin’s direction, as if to acknowledge his roommate’s presence before turning back to fix his eyes on the screen as he spoke.

“I did go to work, and I stayed there for around an hour. However, I spent that entire time getting my sick-leave application approved.”

“You’ve got to be kidding me”, Seungmin said as he sat down on the floor next to Jisung, his hand gripping the bridge of his nose. 

As if his presence in the house wasn’t enough of a confirmation for its approval, Jisung shuffled into his room and came back with a paper that he nearly slammed into Seungmin’s face. He could barely make out the words from such close proximity, but the signature at the end was enough for Seungmin to take in a breath and calmly say “I got it!”

Realising that this sure wasn’t going to get him anywhere, anyways, Seungmin decided to accept his defeat. However, that didn’t stop him voicing his concerns. 

“Weren’t your superiors mad at you for missing the past week?”

“Hm, a little yeah. But when they saw me walk in, looking barely alive and holding on to the door for dear life, I think they concluded that I indeed wasn’t going to be very productive even if I was there”, Jisung said as he resumed his position back on the floor. Only difference was that now instead of returning to the warmth of his fluffy plush, he had laid his head in Seungmin’s lap. Soon enough, Seungmin’s fingers were carding through Jisung’s hair out of habit.

Seungmin hadn’t exactly given up since then. No, he definitely hadn’t, no matter how many times he had wanted to just lock Jisung out of the apartment considering it as his last resort.

He liked to think that he had just run out of ideas, because if even his work couldn’t pull Jisung out of his blanket-burrito form then he wondered if anything truly could. That was until he thought of the one person who he knew was a bit crazy, but a whole lot more rational and convincing than people expected him to be.

“Hyung, aren’t you supposed to be working or something?”, Jisung had asked in a soulless voice as Seungmin leaned against the frame of his bedroom door, with Chan standing behind him, a sheepish grin plastered across his face. 

Chan smiled bigger at Jisung’s comment, turning up his lips in a purely sweet manner with no hint of malice, as he squeezed into the room from Seungmin’s side. “I could say the same to you.” Jisung tsked, arching his body forward to hug the older as he sat down comfortably beside the smaller boy.

“Touché”. 

Chan didn’t offer him a snide and playful remark as he usually would, instead just tightening his grip against the boy and hugging him harder, as a chuckle escaped his lips.

Letting go after a minute or so, Chan stared at the younger directly as he offered him another one of his sweet smiles. One that Jisung could never deny to be the actual personification of comfort. It was these constant reminders of care from Chan that now made him remember his behavior towards the older few days ago. Unconsciously, he dipped his head down, choosing his next words carefully. 

“Channie hyung?”, a hum from Chan resonated in the silence of the room as Jisung continued, “I’m sorry about that day. I know I acted like an ungrateful brat, and it was all just because I was upset and annoyed. I know it’s not right for me to make any excuses for the way I acted—”.

Jisung was cut off, with arms pulling him in again. He gave up trying to be strong, trying to sit a bit straighter in an attempt to convey anything along the lines of “I’m better now”, as he finally let himself melt against the older’s warmth. It was nice, maybe if just for a minute, to accept it to himself that he was just as worse as any of the other days in the week. Getting better was a burden, and he was glad that for a moment, Chan was there to handle that weight for him. 

“You should go out and meet others, Sungie. How about catching up with Felix? He was asking about you the last time I talked to him.”

Even though Jisung hated the idea of socializing, the thought of the freckled boy and his blinding smile did make him consider the option. However, the idea was soon rejected away as he registered just how lifeless he felt. No matter how much effort he’d put into getting out of bed and meeting the boy, he knew he wouldn’t be able to get a word out. 

He hummed, whispering a small “I’ll consider it”, as Chan pulled away. A whine escaped his lips at the sudden loss of heat, earning another chuckle from Chan.

“Is there something you have in mind, right now? Something you wanna do? Just with us, ofcourse”, Seungmin spoke, still standing in his previous spot, startling Jisung for a second. He had completely forgotten about his roommate’s presence there. 

“We could order take—”.

“I am not letting you order food for the third time again today, Jisung. It’s only 4pm, you have the rest of the day left!”, Seungmin said exasperated, no more shifting his weight onto the doorframe. His hands now rested on his hips, as his eyes bore into Jisung’s small figure curled up on the mattress. 

However, he should’ve known Jisung does end up doing whatever he puts his mind to. He should’ve known that as a testimony for all the years they’ve lived together and all the attempts that had failed within the past few days. He did know it somewhat, but Seungmin still couldn’t help but scoff as Jisung instead turned to Chan to give him the best puppy-eyes he could manage.

“Hyungie”, was all he said with a pout so big that Seungmin wanted to cross over to his side and hit him on the head in an instant.

“Oh my god, fine you big baby!”, Chan said, as he stood up shaking his head to open the drawer full of take-out menus stuffed haphazardly into a small space.

“Let’s get Chinese!” Seungmin was sure that was the most excited he had heard Jisung in a while. 

Seungmin moved to stand beside Chan once again, as he pulled out his phone and called in the number from one of the pamphlets the older was holding. “What is with you sulking and eating every two hours, Sung?”

“In case you didn’t know it already, my friend, here’s a life lesson. People may disappoint you at every step of your life, but food never will.” 

Seungmin didn’t know if it was because of the absolutely absurd “life lesson” that he had gotten from the boy, or his dead-serious tone, but soon enough the three of them were laughing like crazy with no plans of stopping anytime soon. At that moment he decided that maybe it wasn’t too bad to let Jisung stay in for a few more days and give him more time.

;

“I am seriously considering just kicking him out of the apartment now. It’s not like he can sue me for that, can he?” 

Hyunjin dropped down on the counter, once again, to be at an eye level with Seungmin as he giggled at the younger’s antics. If someone was to see Seungmin, they’d almost think that getting his roommate out was some sort of project for the boy which he was going to be graded for. Maybe it was so, for Seungmin.

“How many weeks has it been again?”

“Three whole weeks!”, Seungmin nearly shouted, Hyunjin’s hands rushing to cover the boy’s mouth in an attempt to not disturb the other customers with the noise. A sheepish grin made its way onto Seungmin’s lips as he mouthed a quick “sorry”.

“I think that’s enough time for the initiation of the process of moving on. And, obviously, looking around for other prospects too”, Hyunjin said as he raised one of his eyebrows, eyes concentrated on a spot as he seemed to think hard.

“Are you saying he should already be going on dates again? What the fuck, isn’t that too soon?”

“Haven’t you heard the saying? The only way to move on quickly is to start dating someone else again.”

Seungmin scoffed, his nose scrunched in a look of disapproval at Hyunjin’s statement. “I’m pretty sure that’s what they call a rebound. And from my share of knowledge, I know for a fact that never ends up well.”

“It’s a rebound only if you want it to be” 

“What does that even mean—You know what, you need to stop making up these dumb statements and pass them off as “sayings”, Hyunjin.”

“I definitely did not make any of this up!”

“Then tell me who said it.”

“Me, I just did.”

“That’s not what I mea—”.

“Shut up and listen to me.”

“No, you’re ridiculous”.

“Okay, that’s it”, Hyunjin said as he leaned forward, nose inches apart from Seungmin’s, staring directly into the younger’s eyes. “You’re listening to me now.”

Neither of them were aware when Hyunjin had grasped Seungmin’s hands again, but when Seungmin tried to wiggle himself out of the other’s hold, all he got was an indifferent expression.

Seungmin turned his head away, the struggle finally dying as he accepted the older’s firm grip and instead decided to focus on anything but the eager eyes staring right at him. “F-Fine, just let me go.”

Hyunjin smiled big, all the intimidation from his aura suddenly melting back into his usual warmth. “A date”, he said, with no place for hesitance in his voice.

Seungmin’s eyes turned wide, as he spluttered along his words. It was a few seconds before he finally managed to stutter out a complete “What?”

“Send Jisung on a blind date.” 

“Oh, that’s what you meant”, Seungmin said, refusing to accept the exciting feeling slowly dying away in his stomach as he looked back to face Hyunjin again. He could see the mischievous glint in the other’s eyes, but Seungmin decided that suddenly he didn’t have the energy to fight against the idea anymore. 

“Disappointed, are we?” That did earn Hyunjin a pending smack on his arm, but he didn’t mind it, as long as he could see the blush creeping on Seungmin’s cheeks.

“Yeah sure, because Jisung would agree to go on one very easily.”

Hyunjin looked away for a moment, shaking his head, as if Seungmin had said something insensible. Seungmin wondered what was wrong about his statement because he, for a fact, knew that Jisung and the word date did not even belong in the same sentence right now. 

“Well, don’t tell him.”

“Do you have any idea what you’re saying right now?”

“Minnie, it’s really not that difficult. Just sign him up on a dating website and get him a date. Maybe one of the blind date ones! Then it’d be a surprise for both him and us, too. Ofcourse, don’t tell him about any of it. And when the day comes, I’ll help you send him off to the place.”

“It’s terrifying how dedicated you are, suddenly”, Seungmin said, raising his eyebrows as his suspicion regarding the well-detailed plan grew.

“They do tell me I’m smart and passionate.”

Seungmin tilted his head, his eyes narrowing, as he said, “Now, who lied to you?”

It was Hyunjin’s turn to flick Seungmin’s forehead as he dismissed the younger’s comment and continued. “Just set up a profile for him, it’s really easy. I’m sure it’ll be good for him to get out and explore again. There’s not going to be any progress if he spends the entire day locked in his room, thinking about those memories again and again.”

Seungmin hated to admit that he somewhere agreed with Hyunjin right now, even though the plan proposed was absolutely ridiculous. Sure, it was impossible to get Jisung out and about, definitely so when it was for a date. But if it was never going to work out anyways, then what was the harm in trying once, right? At least it would shut up Hyunjin and his crazy train of thoughts.

“I’ll think about it.”

“That’s never good, but hey at least I managed to get something else out of you instead of a blatant ‘no’!”

“What can I say, Mr. Hwang? You do make quite a convincing person”, Seungmin said, his tone as mocking as one could manage.

Hyunjin smirked. “You think I can manage convincing you for another date related idea?”

“I don’t think Jisung can handle more than one date.”

“This one’s not for Jisung, though.” 

Even if Hyunjin’s voice was confident, his tone unwavering, Seungmin could hear the shyness tucked behind a layer of confidence. He fought away the smile threatening to take over his lips, as he stood up, causing Hyunjin to mirror his actions. 

“It’s getting late. I’m gonna go and see if my roommate’s freezing on the couch.”

“Get back safely, Minnie. I’ll call you tomorrow”, Hyunjin said, waving to the boy who was already making his way towards the exit. For a moment he was worried he had stepped over the boundaries, but when Seungmin turned around to give him one shy-little smile, he thought that maybe it was okay to tip over it a little sometimes. 

;

“What are you watching?”, Seungmin said as he plopped down, next to Jisung on the couch.

Jisung gruntled at the sudden dip of cushions next to him, however soon, shifted to lay his legs in Seungmin’s lap as he draped the small blanket over both their bodies. It wasn’t very warm, but the heat combined with the minimal distance between their bodies, was enough to put off the cold for now. 

“Honestly, I don’t even know. It surprisingly has a lot of zombies for a movie named Alive.”

“Stupefying.”

“If that’s what you wanna call it”, said Jisung before both the boys broke into some soft chuckles. 

It was after a moment of silence from both, with the screams from the movie deafening yet not too loud to disturb the peace, that Seungmin shifted his eyes back from the screen to the boy sitting by his side. He could notice the dried tear stains, messed and discontinued, since Jisung must’ve tried to wipe them away. There was a tiredness evident in his eyes, with his hands constantly bunching up the blanket at a side. 

“You should get some sleep, Sung.”

Jisung nodded, pressing his side into Seungmin’s as he laid his head on the other’s shoulder. Seungmin was sure if the sound from the television had been any louder, he would’ve missed Jisung’s whisper saying “Too cold”.

“Want me to sleep with you?”

Without even a second wasted, Jisung nodded, his hair ruffling against Seungmin’s neck. 

“Get into bed, I’ll quickly wash up and be there.”

Again, no words. Just a nod before Jisung stood up from the couch, dropping the blanket back onto the cushions as he huddled over to his room. 

With the boy out of his sight, Seungmin let out a breath he didn’t know he had been holding. As much as Seungmin joked about how bothering it was to have a sulky Jisung all the time in their apartment, he knew that wasn’t all the reason.

What hurt him was not being able to help the other, or hear his loud whines every time he was annoyed with something. He missed the way Jisung would fling himself on top of the other to engulf him into the tightest hug every time Seungmin walked into the apartment, later than expected, just because he had forgotten to notice the time while studying at the library. No matter how much Seungmin would claim to hate those unbearably tight hugs, he missed the extra momentary warmth.

If he had been asked to admit it to his face, Seungmin would never tell Jisung about the worry in him that never seemed to cease. He liked maintaining his tsundere image in front of the smaller boy, thank you very much. However, that did not mean that he was going to let the other wallow in his misery for who knows how long.

He knew Jisung was spontaneous, not too much but just the right amount. Going on a blind date was maybe a little too much, surely when it was merely a month after breaking off a long-term relationship but Hyunjin’s word resonated inside Seungmin’s head again and again.

_“There’s not going to be any progress if he spends the entire day locked in his room, thinking about those memories again and again.”_

Call him selfish, but Seungmin knew he needed his old best friend back for his own sanity. Without wasting another second, he pulled out his phone, evaluating every dating app that the app store offered him, and installing one after a detailed analysis of its security. Even if he was up for sending Jisung on a date, he didn’t want the other person to end up being an old creep after all.

And surely, there was no chance in hell, he was getting out of this plan alive. A shiver ran up his spine as he imagined the other boy barging in their place after the date, with nothing but pure anger in his eyes. However, Seungmin perceived it was nothing compared to the tiny chance of success that the date might have.

Opening the app likes the ones he has always claimed to dislike, Seungmin groaned. He wasn’t even signing himself up but the pure judgement against this piece of technology was evident in the way he swiped and typed at every required step. Soon enough, he was entering Jisung’s interests into a form that looked fairly detailed for a little of his faith to be restored. 

Probably ten minutes or so must’ve passed before he heard Jisung’s voice, muffled by the walls between the boy’s room and the living room. 

“How long is it going to take you? I’m freezing!”

“Just a minute!”, Seungmin said as he clicked on the confirm button, leading to Jisung’s picture being uploaded on the new profile. It wasn’t too difficult for him, considering he knew Jisung’s every possible ID and password, thus making it easier for him to create an account with the others’ credentials. Barely a second had passed before an alert popped up on the screen. 

**_“Give us a moment, and we’ll give you the best blind date you could ask for”_ ** . ****

“You better not disappoint him”, Seungmin said more to himself than to the text staring back at him from the screen. Leaving some match-making algorithms to do the rest of the work for him, Seungmin shuffled into Jisung’s room for the night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> wooooo surprisingly that’s another chapter done :D thank you for bearing with this and giving it a chance . do let me know if you’re enjoying the fic <3 also the next chapter’s going to be a lot more exciting and fun to read, promise! 
> 
>   
> edit : the next update’s going to be a bit delayed since i’m busy with finals and college, sorry abt that :((
> 
> [my twitter](http://twitter.com/seokiepout)  
> [my cc](seokiepout)


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hi im back! sorry for the delay in updating but i finally finished my finals so its time to be regular again aha hope you have fun reading <3 ps ive linked the closest pics that matched with the described outfits to provide a better image

“Tell me I look sexy”, Minho asked the boy who was sprawled out on his bed. At the sudden words directed at him, Changbin’s gaze flitted over to Minho’s side for a second, leaving as soon as they had landed on the taller boy’s figure. 

After minutes of skimming through his closet and the variety of outfits sprawled out in his room, Minho had decided on a rather monochromatic look. Here he was, dressed in high-waist ripped black jeans coupled with a round-neck white tee. Changbin had done the rest of the job for him, picking out a minutely-checkered patterned jacket that seemed to compliment his [look](https://pin.it/7FXQXwy) perfectly. To top off the major highlights, he had decided to go with a pair of black combat boots.

“You look absolutely lethal”.

Changbin’s voice sounded as soulless as he looked but Minho decided he’d take the compliment nonetheless. It wasn’t always that Changbin would play along with him, nonetheless give him actual nice words. 

“Thanks, Binnie!”, he said excitedly as he sat down on the bed, pressing a quick kiss over Changbin’s cheek in the process. Although the younger’s expressions were quick enough to turn into a disgusted one, Minho couldn’t help but giggle over the lack of complaints from his side.

“Do you really have to go though?”, Changbin muffled into the other’s side as he pulled Minho down to hold him tight, ignorant towards all the grunts and curses thrown at him for that. 

“Changbin, you know I don’t ditch my dates.”

“Yeah, sure because that’s so gentleman like when you go on like a different one every week.”

“You say that as if it’s a bad thing”, Minho tsk-ed, untangling himself from the younger’s hold. 

He moved to stand in front of the mirror again, hands swiftly combing through his own hair in an attempt to set them perfectly again. Changbin’s mini-cuddle session had definitely ended up messing it more than he’d normally allow.

“I don’t know how your fucked up logic works but hyung, yes, it is a bad thing”, Changbin slowly spoke as he tried to emphasize the seriousness of his tone. 

Somehow, that just seemed to piss Minho more, as if the creases on his shirt weren’t annoying him enough already. He didn’t turn around, instead deciding to give the death-glare to his own reflection. It was as if he could hear Changbin stiffen up, when the younger stopped speaking immediately and shuffled against the sheets.

“Explain”, Minho said through his gritted teeth. 

Changbin’s tone was careful, as he breathed in deeply before saying his next words, “I-You know what, it’s nothing. Have fun, get laid, or whatever it is that you do.”

Minho turned around, eyes landing upon the boy who refused to look at him directly. His eyes were focused on the hands lying in his lap. Immediately, a wave of guilt washed over Minho as he realised just how tense the atmosphere was. Gone was the playful nature of their bickering, but Minho decided today wasn’t a day he wanted to upset Changbin because of the jerk inside him. 

Within a second wasted, he resumed his position back next to Changbin, his fingers making soothing circles on the younger’s thighs in an attempt to calm him down. 

“You know you should get your pretty face out there, Binnie. You’re robbing way too many people of this beauty.”

A smack on his arm quickly made him retreat his fingers but the giggle escaping Changbin’s lips was enough for Minho to not worry anymore.

“I think you’re making up for that loss though”, Changbin said, shaking his head.

“What can I say? I enjoy exciting things in life, and what can get more surprising than meeting a new person every once in a while.”

“I’ll never understand you extroverts.”

Minho threw his head back laughing as soon as those words left Changbin’s lips, knowing very well that the other boy had absolutely judged him for his outgoing nature since the first day. Minho wants to throw at him a comment stating that the two would’ve never met if it wasn’t for him approaching the smaller boy. 

However, he bites down on his words as his eyes land on the clock placed on his bedside table. If he wanted to make it on time, he should’ve left exactly twenty minutes ago but considering that he was nowhere near to arriving at the place, he gave up on their playful banter and instead checked out his appearance one more time before pocketing his phone. He quickly grabbed the pair of tinted glasses laying on his dresser, setting them on carefully.

He threw a short wave towards the younger boy, still plastered to his mattress, and a soft “go hangout with Hyunjin”, before he was out the door.

;

Jisung decided that he absolutely hated Seungmin.

Fuck all their years of being bestfriends or roommates. At this moment, the only thing that he could feel was an absolute desire to fling the other out of their window. Here he was, standing outside the door of a restaurant he should’ve guessed Seungmin would never spend money on, peaking at the strangers seated inside and figuring out which one of them was the one waiting for him. He hoped it wasn’t the very old man that creepily glanced at every person who walked through the doors.

“Table Number 7, the name’s Lee Minho”, was the text he had received from Seungmin about ten minutes ago. 

Surely, confusion had found its way to Jisung at first. However, he had soon started piecing the events of the day together in his head, finally coming to a conclusion that was nothing short of dreadful to him.

;

The morning had been nothing out of the ordinary for him, that was if anyone was to consider being dragged out of bed by Seungmin and dropped on to the floor normal. Really, it wasn’t surprising for Jisung anymore, to feel his head hit the cold floor first thing in the morning. People had birds chirping and sunshine filtering in the window for them, while Jisung had a weight dragging him to reality as soon as he opened his eyes, courtesy of his ever so lovely roommate.

“I get it, sweet mornings aren’t your type of thing but that doesn’t mean others despise the idea too”, Jisung said, rubbing his eyes with a tiny fist as he stretched against the foot of his bed. 

“Oh, do elaborate on that idea because I’m so eager to know what you want”, Seungmin said, paying no heed to the pouty boy and instead moving the curtains away to allow sharp sunlight to hit his face. 

“I don’t expect you to wake me up with breakfast in bed, just a slap on the cheek would be nicer than this too, you know”. 

The words were muffled, as Jisung slipped his blanket back on to the mattress and moved to grab himself some clean clothes from the closet. He stood in front of the variance of colors he had accumulated in that little space, wondering if he was feeling perhaps a bit cheery to go for bright color today. However, as his eyes landed on his comfortable black hoodie, he decided against it in a heartbeat.

“Thank you for the suggestion, Mr. Han. It won’t be taken into consideration at all”, Seungmin said, pushing Jisung out of the way and instead taking the lead over his choice of clothes. Surely, a sharp “hey!” from the smaller boy was heard, as he regained his balance and moved to stand behind Seungmin due to the lack of space. 

“What’s with the sudden interest in my closet?”, asked Jisung, completely forgetting about their previous banter.

Seungmin, however, must’ve decided to ignore the question as all Jisung heard was a bunch of hums. The other boy continued to inspect every piece of clothing he owned and it was no surprise that within seconds Jisung’s patience was running out. He finally moved forward to support his chin on Seungmin’s shoulder in an attempt to follow his gaze, and figure out what exactly was unfolding in front of him at 9 in the morning.

“I can literally report you for obstruction of my privacy”, Jisung whispered into Seungmin’s ears, to which the other just shook his head.

However, before Jisung could interrogate or bother him any more, Seungmin jerked away the boy’s head that previously rested on his shoulder, to move forward and pull out an outfit from the choices offered. 

Jisung stared at the scene, his eyebrows disappearing into his hairline, as his roommate continued to line up several pieces of clothing on his now fully occupied bed. He was expecting the other to just be looking for one of his missing hoodies or something, but he realised his assumption was wrong if the fancy clothes sprawled out were anything to go by. 

There was a white dress-shirt coupled with an oversized sweater, a black turtleneck and another fuzzy white sweater that Jisung swears he didn’t even remember buying. As if that much of a mess wasn’t enough, Seungmin soon followed to drop some ripped jeans and leather pants on to the space, making Jisung groan.

“Choose”.

“Okay, first of all, what the fuck? Second of all, no”, Jisung said, crossing his arms against his chest.

Instead of regarding Jisung’s words, once again, the boy just sighed as he moved to stand by the mattress and carefully scrutinized everything he had laid down seconds before. “I have to do everything here!”

“Well, maybe if you stopped pretending I was a ghost and answered me, I would help!”

“Fair enough. Pick out an outfit for the evening, then”, Seungmin said as he moved aside to allow Jisung to stand by his side. Jisung’s shoulders dropped, the annoyance slipping out of him at the acknowledgement finally offered to him.

“What’s in the evening?” 

“I’m taking you out — ”. From the corner of his eyes, Seungmin could see the disapproval ready to slip out of Jisung’s mouth, “ — and before you say no, let me tell you something. You do not have a choice except yes”.

Even though he had stated himself very clearly, Seungmin knew that wasn’t something that would stop Jisung’s whines and complaints. However, when no such whiny dialogues were thrown at him, he turned to the other with a raised eyebrow. Suddenly, the silence was becoming too unusual for his liking.

“Don’t tell me you started singing Yes or Yes in your head”.

“I’m not saying anything”, Jisung said, his lips pressed into a thin line as he tried to fight back the smile ghosting over his lips. “However, I am going to ask where we’re going though.”

Well, that went better than expected, Seungmin thought to himself. He had come up with countless arguments the previous night, different reasons and blackmail options to try and pursue the other to agree with him. However, he realised he might’ve underestimated the authority he holds amongst the two.

“To a restaurant”, Seungmin said, his tone casual in contrast to the nervousness bubbling up inside him. 

“Okay, that’s a no”. Seungmin sighed accepting that the authority he had established just seconds before didn’t need more than a few breaths to be broken down. Talk about the unpredictability of being friends with Han Jisung.

“You just agreed a moment before!”

“That was before you told me we’re going to a restaurant. That’s a crowded place, Seungmin, with actual people. Plural. Not just two people including you and me, but with actual humans around. Also, I never really said yes if you think about it”.

Seungmin threw his hands in the air, exasperated with the ridiculousness of the other. He wondered if he could’ve just gotten Chan to do this part of him. Surely, the older must be having some better persuasion skills, right?

“Where did you think I was going to take you? Ofcourse, there’s people everywhere, Sung.”

“Give me one reason why I should go out and be surrounded by an actual room full of people. Something that’s convincing enough to make me step out of my isolation”, Jisung said, his jaw set tight as he stared at Seungmin with utmost seriousness in his eyes.

It was at that moment that Seungmin realised that okay, maybe he wasn’t as prepared to execute the plan as he had imagined himself to be. The seriousness in Jisung’s voice had unnerved him for a second, making him want to rush right back into the comfort of his own room and call Hyunjin up for help. Surely, that wasn’t possible, and although he hated everything about the idea, he decided he only had one wild card left to throw at the other boy. Jisung could refuse everything, even good food as bizarre as that assumption may seem, but he would never miss out on an opportunity to tease Seungmin.

“Hyunjin”, was all Seungmin had to say as he watched Jisung’s eyes widen into disbelief. 

He seemed to process the name for a second, before the realization must’ve hit him and suddenly there it was. The smirk that Seungmin swore he hated to death.

Jisung moved to hold Seungmin’s shoulders, eyes boring directly into his, as he spoke without sparing any time to breathe. “You mean the pretty boy you’ve been flirting with? Oh my god! Is he coming to dinner? Are you finally introducing me to him? Did you both stop with your mutual pining phase? How long has it been since you started dating? I can’t believe you didn’t tell me, Kim Seungmin!”

Seungmin knew he was just digging a hole, deeper and deeper for himself. Not only was he going to face Jisung’s wrath later, but here he was, embarrassing himself as the inevitable blush creeped onto his cheeks. Hyunjin was going to pay for this idea, he decided, no matter what.

“W-We’re not dating yet, but I just mentioned you in one of our conversations and then he asked if he could meet you”.

“Oh my god, Minnie! Look at you both meeting each other’s friends and stuff. I can’t believe you’re actually getting a boyfriend and you’re letting me meet him!”, Jisung said, his voice emphasizing every word. 

Seungmin couldn’t help the horror that crept up to him on imagining the actual meeting between the two if it did indeed take place. On one end would be Hyunjin, who absolutely loved to make him stutter and blush, and on the other end would be Jisung, his roommate who had sworn to make his life a living embarrassment every moment. Surely one could imagine the fast friendship the two would develop over his misery.

“I’m not getting a boyfriend, it’s just a friendly hangout. Also, don’t make me regret this. Just don’t embarrass me for once”.

Jisung gasped at that, his hands recoiling and gripping his own chest in an attempt to feign hurt. 

“When have I ever embarrassed you”, Jisung said, in an unquestioning tone because he was sure Seungmin could pull out a list of incidents stating the contrary in the blink of an eye.

“You do not want an answer to that”, was all Seungmin said before leaving Jisung with his probable outfit choices and a pinky-promise stating that the smaller boy wouldn’t ditch the dinner. 

Just as Seungmin was stepping out of the house in an attempt to run over to the lecture he was already ten minutes late to, Jisung had stopped him with his head peeking out from the little space resulting from him partially opening his bedroom door. 

“At what time will you be back?”, Jisung said with his eyebrows raised and an adorable pout settled on his lips as he waited for the other’s answer.

“Actually, I’ll just meet you at the place. I’ll bring Hyunjin with me”, Seungmin said as he stood at the entrance of their shared apartment, his side barely turned towards the living room in an attempt to get a minimal look at Jisung.

Jisung nodded at that, his eyebrows furrowed as he contemplated Seungmin’s words before speaking up, “That makes sense. Ofcourse I’m going to be the third wheel.”

Seungmin sighed at that, turning his back before finally stepping out and stating his words loud enough for Jisung to hear through the closed door.

“There are no wheels!”

;

“Hey, beautiful”, Hyunjin said, barely holding in his giggles as Seungmin proceeded to slam his books on the table before taking a seat opposite to the taller boy and giving him the coldest glare.

“I’m going to kill you.”

“Is it just me or have the greetings really gone downhill here?”, Hyunjin laughed, as he ushered over a waitress and ordered their drinks. The usual iced americano and vanilla shake, as always.

Seungmin disregarded his comment, as he laid his head on the table and melted in his seat, looking nothing too unusual in a cafe that was filled with university students looking just as dull.

“What’s gotten you so exhausted? Too many assignments again?”

“I wish that was it but no, it’s not. Instead, I set Jisung up on a blind date”, Seungmin raised his head, his voice growing clearer as he finally spoke while looking at Hyunjin in the face.

“But that’s a good thing! When is it? Do you need some help in sending him off? Is that what’s getting you stressed?”

“No, all that’s done. I-I’m just exhausted from all the excuses I had to come up with”, Seungmin said as he bent down to sip the sweet drink that had been placed in front of him just a second ago. Sugar was all that he was needed right now.

Hyunjin’s eyes seemed to brighten up at that, as the sound of his tiny claps danced around the quietness of their surroundings. “What did you tell him?”

“That question reminds me that I wanted to kill you”.

“You’re already doing that with that pout of yours so go ahead and tell me all about it, now”, Hyunjin said nonchalantly as he himself proceeded to sip on his own caffeinated drink.

“You’re so annoying”, Seungmin continued in a heartbeat before giving Hyunjin the chance to reply with his usual favorite dialogue of “but you love it”.

“I told him I was taking him to dinner with you. He got excited, thinking we were dating and agreed easily.”

“You told him we were dating?”, Hyunjin said with his eyes hanging wide, and his ears the most red Seungmin swears he had ever seen. It was nice to make Hyunjin flustered once in a while, especially when he was the one who was an embarrassed mess just a few hours ago.

“It was your idea! Obviously, I managed to drag you into it somehow”, Seungmin said, rushing to his own defense.

“By telling him we were dating?”

Hyunjin seemed to be stuck on that, and Seungmin doesn’t think he should blame him for that because it was the first time they had even talked about dating amongst the two of them. All because of some stupid lies, at that. Sure, they had spent every waking second flirting with each other over the duration of the past few months but none of them had dared to step further than that. 

“Not exactly that but yeah, I’m sorry about that. It just slipped outー”.

Hyunjin was quick to shake his head, his words taking over Seungmin’s in a second, “No, no! It’s completely fine, I get it”.

“So when’s the date?”, Hyunjin said, trying to walk over the little awkward silence that had found its way to them for the first time since he could remember.

“WhaーOh, you mean the blind date? It’s today”, Seungmin said as he pulled out his phone from the pocket of his bag that was messily laying in his lap. “Actually, it’s right now”.

He hadn’t even realised that he had been running this late. It was already 7 in the evening, and he was sure he had promised to meet Hyunjin at the cafe at 6. That meant he was nearly an hour late, but the other boy had said not even a word about it. Seungmin wondered if it was too late to apologise, but the thought shot right out his mind as his phone rang with the screen flashing a way too familiar caller ID at him. 

His vision focused back on the boy sitting in front of him, eyes pleading as he knew what was waiting for him on the other end of the call. Hyunjin seemed to get his struggle just from his expressions as he pushed Seungmin to pick up the call anyways. After seconds of reassurance and a lot of deep breaths, he finally dared to accept the call.

“You better not come home tonight, Kim Seungmin”.

;

Jisung wondered if walking out and ditching the person waiting for him would be the right call to make. It was no doubt that he wasn’t ready to meet whoever it was, afterall he didn’t even know about the situation unfolding in front of him more than five minutes ago. He would like to think that even choosing between different snacks at 3 am deserved longer consideration than that, but here he was, staring through the window glass in an attempt to get a peek at his said company for the night.

He knew it was all to be blamed on Seungmin, afterall it was him who put both the stranger and him into this position thanks to whatever the source of such a disastrous idea was. The other person, supposedly named Lee Minho, must not be aware of the mess on his part either. Thus, ditching them would be a completely rude move to make. If anything, it should be the people-pleasing tendencies in Jisung which stopped him to turn away from the restaurant door. 

It was another ten minutes of just standing at the entrance that Jisung decided that the constant war in his head wasn’t something he could sort out. He did not have the mental capacity or an unbiased opinion over the situation, which meant he needed help. And that too, from the person who was the only one that stayed sober during their group hangouts, just because he knew how much wasted the others were going to get. 

“Hey, Lix. I need your quick help”, Jisung whispered, as he moved to a corner near the end of the building with his phone clutched near his ear.

“Oh hi, Sungie! I’ve been trying to reach out to you but Chan told me you needed some time alone so I didn’t wanna bother you”, came Felix’s raspy voice, tinted with a speck of concern and a whole lot of relief. 

“Yeah, I did. Thank you for that.”

“You mentioned needing help with something?”

“Okay, this is gonna sound all messy and weird but I just can’t decide on what to do. So, I came to the conclusion that I needed a responsible adult to call the shots.”

Felix’s giggle filled the sound coming from the receiver, as he struggled to speak his next words through his little fit of laughter, “And you thought I’m the right person for that? I’m literally younger than you, mate.”

“Yeah, just by a few days! And I was hoping we could focus more on the ‘responsible’ part there.”

“Well then, I’ll try my best to live upto your expectations. Tell me, what is it?”, the deep voice on the other end suddenly seemed to still, a seriousness replacing the previous humor in Felix’s tone. 

“Again, don’t be surprised but Seungmin set me up on a blind date? I think? I’m right now at the place where we’re supposed to meet but I just can’t make myself go in. It’s like Minnie basically tricked me into coming here, without letting me get a hint. Ah, seriously, that sly fucker”, Jisung said, the fingers of his free hand rising up to grip the bridge of his nose as he contemplated all the methods to take revenge on his lovely roommate. 

“Wait, what’s the problem in it though? I think it’ll be a good change for you to meet someone new”, Jisung scoffed at that, not believing that Felix was siding with the clearly wrong person here. How ridiculous is that!

“Lix, it’s been only a month since I broke up with him!”, he whined in an attempt to convey his point across.

“Okay, maybe it is a little sooner than the traditional after-breakup period but there can be no harm in going along with it, Sung. I’m sure Seungmin just wanted to do something nice for you. You know he’d never do anything to hurt you, at the end of the day. Even if his methods are sometimes a little unconventional, it’s all to help you.”

“But Lixieee”, Jisung stretched out the words, hoping that maybe some whining would bring Felix over to his side. He just wanted a little support from someone else, stating that yes leaving was the correct thing to do but the entire plan was just going downhill. 

“Listen to me. How about you go in there, maybe try to get into a conversation with him for like five minutes. If you’re comfortable, you can stick around longer. If not, you immediately go home and I’ll be over to help you beat Seungmin’s ass. That sound good?”

Jisung thought that it must’ve been Felix’s voice, his comforting tone and his warmth through the speaker, which made the proposed plan sound suitable enough for him to carry out. There is no way in hell he would’ve stepped inside the building without his knees giving up on him during the first few seconds if it wasn’t for the other boy’s reassurement.

After some seconds of silence, Jisung answered with a long hum and a quiet, “You’re right” which made Felix sound a bit more ecstatic. With the problem sorted out just like that, he disconnected the call with their said plan of attacking Seungmin together, later at night, still hanging in the air. 

Jisung looked around, checking his surroundings once, before straightening his clothes and taking a deep breath. Even after all the trouble Seungmin went through to scrutinize every piece of clothing he owned just a few hours ago, Jisung had settled on the least worn out hoodie he owned, coupled it with some ripped jeans and boots, and left his room with an overcoat and a muffler providing the much needed warmth. He was already stepping out of his comfort zone here, the least Seungmin could do was not attack him for his [outfit](https://images.app.goo.gl/wxzd63DD5fPY3rAN8) choice.

This wasn’t anything major, just a blind date like the couple of ones he’d been to before he ended up with Jihyun. He’d just go in, say the essential greetings, make some small talk as they would eat and then just scurry back to his place in an instant. The previous days of social deprivation should allow him to get this exchange successfully. 

Picking up his pace, Jisung forced out a polite greeting to the guard that stood at the entrance and had probably seen all the tantrums he had thrown in the past fifteen minutes. His voice nearly gave up mid-sentence, so he concluded the greeting with a little nod and stepped inside the place. It was definitely too high-status for him. 

No, Jisung wasn’t a broke college student who could barely afford meals other than packets of ramen like his past self. He was a successful employee now, who earned just the right amount. However, that didn’t mean he liked spending his paycheck on places like these, with everything shining too bright for his comfort. He preferred the dull lighting of the little street restaurant near his apartment. Although, today he didn’t seem like he had a choice, as he walked straight to come face-to-face with a waiter. 

“Hi, could you tell me which one’s table number 7?”

“Sure sir, this way.”

As expected the service smile on the waiter’s face didn’t waver as he led Jisung to one of the tables at the corner of the room. Jisung would be lying if he didn’t say he was a little relieved as they passed the creepy old man’s table. Instead, they stopped at one where a man was already seated, with his back turned to Jisung. 

“This is it, sir.”

At the waiter’s words, and Jisung’s quiet “thank you”, the man turned around. His eyes travelled all over the smaller boy’s figure, as he shamelessly checked Jisung out the entire time he shuffled into his seat opposite to the other. 

Jisung almost wanted to call out the man on his blatant behavior, but he figured neither of them needed that embarrassment right now. He figured going according to the plan and introducing himself was his best option. That definitely couldn’t go any wrong, thanks to twenty years of experience.

Except that Jisung didn’t expect to be interrupted before he could even begin.

Walking in and sitting himself down in front of a beautiful man, with his breath hitched, and listening to the most atypical words instead of a greeting was definitely a first one for Jisung. All he could do was stare right back at the brown pupils boring into him, as he processed his date’s words.

“Oh no, you’re the boyfriend type.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i cant believe minsung’s finally entering the scene hehe i hope you’re excited about how it all goes down :D thank you for reading, do tell me if u specifically liked any parts or what ur expecting next id love to hear abt it <3


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